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(Stowe) Looking back, gubernatorial candidate Dean Roy says his political ambitions date back to early high school. In other words, last year.
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After working as a legislative aide at the Vermont State Capitol, the 14-year-old Stowe High School student is now aiming for governor. In November, he will be the first gubernatorial candidate under the age of 18 to appear on the state’s general election ballot.
“I don’t necessarily expect to win,” he said. What I hope is to start the movement and encourage more young people to follow me by saying that we too want to change things. »
Another high school student, Ethan Sonneborn, ran for the Democratic nomination for governor in 2018 but finished last in a four-candidate primary. Mr Roy secured his place in the general election by creating his own third party, the Freedom and Unity party.
Both were able to run because the state constitution does not set a minimum age for gubernatorial candidates, requiring only that they have been residents of the state for four years.
“I know it sounds crazy, a 14-year-old running for governor, but honestly, look at the people who are in charge right now,” the young man said in a message posted to his campaign’s Instagram page. They’ve been doing this forever and things still don’t work. »
Almost all other states set a minimum age for governor, often 30. In Kansas, lawmakers added a requirement in 2018 requiring gubernatorial candidates to be at least 25 years old, after 6 teenagers ran for office.
Peter Teachout, a professor at the Vermont Law and Graduate School, has a different view than Dean Roy on the Vermont Constitution. He highlights a section of the text which specifies the conditions for a person to be “entitled to benefit from the privileges of an elector”, namely that they must be 18 years old. But even with the teen’s interpretation, Mr. Teachout doesn’t foresee a win for the teen.
“In theory, a four-year-old could run for governor. Should we be worried? No. Vermonters can be a little grumpy and defiant just for fun, but that’s not something they’re likely to support in this context. »
Dean Roy, who said he does not identify with either major party, said housing is the most important issue facing the state. He also thought about how he would balance his studies with a full-time job as governor, saying he would consider taking online classes and do his homework in the evenings after work.
